in Abstracts of the XVIIIth World Veterinary Poultry Association Congress (2013, August)

Salmonella enterica and Campylobacter spp food poisoning are major public health burden. In Belgium, breeding of mule duck is well developed and “foie gras” consumption shows a yearly increase. Flament et ... [more ▼]

Salmonella enterica and Campylobacter spp food poisoning are major public health burden. In Belgium, breeding of mule duck is well developed and “foie gras” consumption shows a yearly increase. Flament et al. (2012) published a paper on the Belgian Salmonella spp infection in ducks but up to now there are no data about Campylobacter prevalence. The monitoring of Campylobacter spp infections was performed from March 2008 to April 2009 in 9 Belgian duck farms starting at the arrival of French ducklings up to the end of the force-feeding period. Cotton-tipped swabs of droppings were collected in duckling transportation boxes 24 to 48 h after the arrival of animals in the farm. Pools of bird droppings (10 to 50 g in 3 to 5 samples, representative of the housing area) were collected at 3, 6, 9 weeks of age and at time of introduction in the force-feeding rooms (at 11 or 12 weeks of age). A membrane filter method adapted from the original Steele and Mc Dermott (1984) method was used. After the filtering step, Campy blood free selective medium plates were incubated at 37°C, micro-aerobically ([O2] < à 10%) in anaerobic jars and colonies corresponding to putative Campylobacter spp were further identified with the API Campy® system. Campylobacter spp was isolated from all flocks, most of the time already at arrival of ducklings or at 3 weeks of age. Campylobacter jejuni subsp. jejuni (32/42) was the most frequent species isolated (Fig.1). Campylobacter coli (3/42), Campylobacter jejuni subsp. doylei (2/42) and Helicobacter fennelliae (3/42) were unfrequently isolated. Two isolates could not be identified to the species. Our results confirm those of Tsai et Hsiang (2005) who found a prevalence of 92% for Campylobacter in Taiwan. The isolations of Campylobacter jejuni subsp. doylei and Helicobacter fennelliae were unexpected. Indeed man is considered the reservoir of Campylobacter jejuni subsp. doyley and up to now the isolation of Helicobacter was never reported from ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) (Murphy et al., 2005). In conclusion the putative role of mule ducks in the transmission of Campylobacter food borne illness should not be underestimated [less ▲]

1 Corticosterone, cortisol, triglycerides, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and uric acid (UA) plasma concentration were measured at 8 and 12 weeks of age, at slaughtering and 45 min after an adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) stimulation test (8 weeks of age) in twelve male mule ducks. 2 No significant increase of corticosterone was found during the force feeding period. 3 Comparison of corticosterone and cortisol levels indicates that cortisol can be considered as a reliable acute stress indicator in future routine examinations. 4 Triglycerides and AST plasma concentrations progressively increased from pre-force feeding period to slaughtering. 5 UA plasma concentrations also increased from the start at 8 weeks of age to mid-force feeding time but no difference was noticed between mid-force feeding period and slaughtering. [less ▲]

in Veterinary Record : Journal of the British Veterinary Association (2012)

Salmonella species infections of male mule ducks were studied for 32 months in 100 flocks on nine duck farms in Belgium. The prevalence of Salmonella species infections changed significantly over time (P ... [more ▼]

Salmonella species infections of male mule ducks were studied for 32 months in 100 flocks on nine duck farms in Belgium. The prevalence of Salmonella species infections changed significantly over time (P<0.001) with infection rates of 50, 13.4, 6.7, 2.6 and 2.9 per cent, respectively, at the time of arrival on the farm, at three, six and nine weeks of age, and when the ducks left the breeding unit to enter the force-feeding rooms (at 11 or 12 weeks of age). During the study period, 95 strains of Salmonella were isolated, belonging to 11 serotypes. S Indiana (42.1 per cent) and S Regent (36.8 per cent) were the two most common serotypes, whereas S Typhimurium and S Enteritidis were found only once (1.1 per cent). All isolated strains were resistant to at least two antimicrobials, but resistance to more than five antimicrobials was observed in 21.6 per cent of the strains. [less ▲]